Challenges and solutions to embedding skills within the curriculum

Challenges

Solutions

Academic staff resistant to change/ not seen as their responsibility: "It's not my job!"

Timetabling issues – no space in the curriculum

More engagement with staff to make it easy for them

Highlight benefits and solutions

Work with students - using positive student feedback and engaging with student reps and the student union

Seen by academics as remedial/lower order activity; students should already have the skills

Highlight benefits and solutions

Work with students - using positive student feedback and engaging with student reps and the student union

Enabling people to understand the concept of employability

Who is embedding what?Who is responsible for embedding? What research is there into what skills students need?

Students integrating and embedding their own learning -reflection

Make the pockets of good examples visible.

Skills need to be based in context, for example are they part of professional requirements or graduate attributes?

Academic staff lack some key skills i.e. ICT but most learner developers only support students

Provide peer support or mentors

Staff Development Unit to include ICT training

Encourage staff to use on-line resources and provide bespoke ones

Challenges

Solutions

Engaging students

Teaching that is:

Interesting and stimulating

At the right level

Subject-related

Credit bearing

Timely

Students want help from outside department (non-assessors)Comments:
C1: Does this mean students don't have confidence in their academic subject lecturers?C2: Not necessarily – many academics are great but there is a conflict of roles or hats – mentor/assessor/teacher/adviser

Go to the library, students' Union, support services

Start a PASS / PALS scheme

Get all these people working closely together

Academic Skills Tutors

Learner Developers

1 to 1s & workshops

Diverse groups of students with different concerns

Multiple mediums of support – VLE / discussion forums / curriculum / online / Peer or PASS schemes & student leaders / 1 to 1 and matching in terms of delivery so large groups or 1 to 1 where appropriate.

Working in smaller groups where possible

Levels, modes of study, appropriateness for learners for support resources

Feedback forums for informing regime

Different academic languages

Distinguish what is familiar and what is obvious to us and to students

Present staff with student examples e.g. definitions of critical thinking and ask them what they agree with

Student involvement: Engage students in decoding what things mean to them

Challenge staff within a department to come to a shared understanding

Challenges

Solutions

Measuring evidence of impact

Finding engaged academics to work with (and demonstrate impact by the work you’ve done with them)

Getting teaching valued alongside research

Value pedagogic research

Put REF in perspective

Different paths for promotion

Offer recognition within the institution for good teachers

Having strategic input / overcoming institutional barriers

Partnership with students e.g. Student Union / students' voice

Input into strategic plans (active in meetings / open meetings where possible)

Send reports to committees / individuals with influence

Persuade others of the value of what you do

Evidence base

Evaluate and record successes

Get academics to champion your cause – staff success stories

Persistence and opportunism

Think about how you market yourself

Apply for funding

Get published and raise your status

Benchmark your institution's provision against similar institutions

If possible, become part of the validation process for new courses / programme reviews